In reply to Blackjack's assertion that discussion of m/m or f/f shipping could be kept at a certain level--I can agree with that, but the issue is some parents may not.
While it would be nice if all parents could agree that their younguns were capable of listening to discussion about the phenomenon of shounen-ai, shoujo-ai, yuri, and yaoi, there are quite a few folks out there who find the very idea perverted and wrong.
A notarized statement may not be necessary--it isn't for schools offering sex ed--but some sort of signed permission slip detailing possible topics would be necessary for the >18 set.
I don't know how we would get the form out before the con started, but maybe a printable .pdf file like Yaoi-con does for their folks.
Why is this a big deal to me? Kinokuniya bookstore stopped stocking their yaoi items and have been carding buyers of yaoi for the last year due to a situation where a 16yo boy bought a book, his mom found it, and harrassed the store. So now *I* have no idea what titles are coming unless I go the the Biblos website and look.
I'm trying to strike a balance between getting more fans into fandom, making a safe space for queer youth, and not coming across as an ecchi perv. I would like to have younger fen join the discussion, because shounen-ai is a safe and fluffy way to explore feelings about relationships without having to resort to gay porn as the only source of info.
Is there a way to send >18 attendees a permission slip to bring to the con?